According to a report by USA Today, several hundred New York health-care workers, civil libertarians and members of anti-vaccine groups on Tuesday railed against a mandate that medical professionals get seasonal and swine-flu vaccines.

But the state health commissioner said their arguments are baseless, but nurses and other health-care workers said they shouldn't be forced to get a vaccine that they don't believe has been tested appropriately as a condition of keeping their jobs.

Dr. Richard Daines, state health commissioner, disputed claims that the vaccine hasn't been properly tested, telling reporters that the seasonal flu and H1N1 vaccines are safe and vaccination is the most effective way to prevent the flu. He criticized anti-vaccine groups for protesting the H1N1 shots.

"This isn't the time to pump air into a completely deflated argument about vaccine safety," he said.